The territory of the legendary Lenfilm film studio was originally in the private ownership of the Aquarium garden, which belonged to the merchant Georgy Alexandrov, who operated a restaurant, a public garden and a theater on the same site. The composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky came to what was then the Aquarium Theater (and is now Stage №4 of Lenfilm) as a guest to the 1893 performance of the overture to his “The Nutcracker” ballet. Famous Russian bass singer Feodor Chaliapin performed here in the 1910’s and the early 1920’s. Stars of the Soviet era also gave performances here, such as Isaak Dunaevsky and Leonid Utyosov with his jazz-band during the 1920’s and 1930’s. The facilities and land of the Leningrad film studio were nationalized in 1918 and it was established as a Soviet state-funded film industry. Since 1934 the studio has been named Lenfilm. By the end of the Soviet Union era, Lenfilm had produced about 1,500 films. Many film classics were produced at Lenfilm throughout its history and some of these were granted international awards at various film festivals. Lenfilm is a place that is tightly connected with world famous celebrities, such as Jane Fonda, Maximilian Schell, Marina Vlady, Julia Ormond, Michael Caine, William Hurt, Sophie Marceau, Sean Bean, Sandrine Bonnaire, Gérard Philipe and with many great Russians.
Today, you can stroll freely throughout its halls, admire the original props and costumes from Soviet productions and Soviet-Western co-productions, have a drink and a snack at the café and, of course, attend film screenings. The studio has a lovely spacious garden so in the warmer months you can take your drink and snack and enjoy them in the sunshine.